GRi in Parliament
- Ghana 07 - 07 - 2000
Parliament
says no to banks' levy for export fund
Speaker
to participate in world conference of Speakers
Parliament endorses Public Accounts Committee's report
Accra
(Greater Accra) 07 July 2000
Parliament
on Thursday exercised utmost caution to keep its image intact as it rejected an
amendment proposal tabled to levy 0.5 per cent of the net profit of financial
institutions to feed the proposed Export and Development Fund.
Some
members opined that since none of the financial institution has been consulted
on the issue, its acceptance would give the house a "bully" tag.
Strong
arguments had characterised the debate on the proposal made by Mr. Akwasi
Osei-Adjei, NPP-Ejisu-Juaben, at the consideration stage of the bill.
The mover
said the financial institutions are well endowed to contribute significantly to
the export drive.
"Whoever
is endowed in society should help uplift the community," he stated. The
member said that when there is a boom in export sector, banks would naturally
be the front line beneficiaries.
He said it
is dangerous to put much strain on the importer since whatever levy he pays
would be passed on to the final consumer.
Mr Kwadwo
Baah-Wiredu, NPP-Asante Akim North, backed the proposal, saying it would help
increase the source of funding for the fund.
The member
said by adopting the proposal, the fund will have a guarantee source of funding
even at the long term.
"The
arrangement is fair and would not put pressure on the financial institutions
since the percentage is quite low.
Papa
Owusu-Ankoma, NPP Sekondi, said the principle underlying the proposal is wrong
and discriminatory, adding that it is just not fair to tax the net profit of a
private company.
Mr Kobina
Fosu, NDC-Ajumako/Odoben/Brakwa, said the banks would even make life difficult
since they would pass it on to their customers in the form of bank charges and
interest rates.
Mr. Justice
D.F. Annan, Speaker, asked members to always consider how the image of the
house would be like in the eyes of the public before taking any decision.
The
Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Dan Abodakpi, asked the house to reject the
amendment since those to be affected were not consulted.
GRi../
Accra
(Greater Accra) 07 July 2000
The Speaker
of Parliament, Mr Justice Daniel F. Annan, will participate in a conference of
Speakers of national parliaments throughout the world to be held in New York,
United States.
The event,
which is the first of its kind, will take place on Wednesday, August 30, and
run until September 1 and will be addressed by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
According
to a press release issued on Thursday in Parliament by the Inter-Parliamentary
Union (IPU), the summit reflects the will of peoples of the world as their
presiding officers will raise their voice in the international forum.
The release
said the speakers would participate more fully in major international political
negotiations where decisions, which directly affect the life of the citizen are
adopted.
The
president of IPU's Inter-Parliamentary Council, Dr. Najma Heptulla, stated:
"this conference will be the parliamentary input to the UN General
Assembly's millennium session".
"If
the UN is the organisation of national governments, the IPU is the organisation
of national parliaments. Since both
government and opposition parties are represented at the IPU, the organisation
can justly claim to represent the full spectrum of democratic society,"
she added.
The
conference will be presided over by Dr. Heptulla, who will be assisted by
several speakers, some of whom are from countries holding a permanent seat on
the UN Security Council.
Established
in 1889, the IPU, the world organisation of parliaments based in Geneva,
currently has 138 affiliated national parliaments and five associate regional
parliamentary assemblies.
One of its
objectives is to provide a parliamentary dimension to parliaments and their
members in the activities of these two inter-governmental organisations.
The IPU has
a liaison office with the UN in New York.
GRi../
Accra
(Greater Accra) 07 July 2000
The Public
Accounts Committee of Parliament is to submit proposals for a legislation to
empower Parliament to enforce sanctions against ministries, departments and
agencies in the public sector for malfeasance in financial administration.
Mr J. H.
Mensah, Chairman of the Committee, served the notice on Thursday when winding
up a debate on a motion for the adoption of the committee's report on the
Auditor-General's Report on Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Central
Government for the period ended 31st December, 1996.
The House
unanimously endorsed the committee's report.
Mr. Mensah,
who is also the Minority Leader, noted that the Auditor-General's reports on
the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), have consistently contained
malfeasance in financial administration by the MDAs.
He said due
to the absence of a legislation empowering Parliament to compel the Executive
arm of government to enforce sanctions recommended by the Auditor-General on
such public sector organisations and individual public officers found guilty of
such malfeasance, these recommendations invariably become "a
nullity".
He said
under such circumstance, the Committee intends to submit proposals to the House
to make it possible for Parliament to enact a law empowering it to compel
accountability of government.
In its
report the Committee noted that many heads of departments and other personnel
in responsible positions have either little or no knowledge of the laws
governing the financial decisions of the MDAs in the administration of monies
Parliament has appropriated to them.
The report
said even accounting and internal auditing staff seem often to have an
inadequate grasp of the laws and regulations.
In the
circumstance, public funds are haphazardly disbursed, thus frustrating the
policy and developmental purposes for which the monies were voted by Parliament.
The
Committee expressed concern about the wasteful locking up of vast amounts of
public funds in numerous uncompleted projects scattered throughout the country.
It was also
not happy with the untimely release of monies accrued to the District Assemblies'
Common Fund, making it impossible for decentralised administrations to steadily
pursue any planned programmes of local development.
The
Committee urged Parliament to engage all stakeholders in the public sector
financial management to evolve reform systems this year to check the spate of
misappropriation and misapplication of funds.
It
recommended that institutions without internal audit units should take
immediate steps to establish them as a matter of urgency and supplement these
with regular external auditing.
The
Committee endorsed the need to institute regular in-service training programmes
for financial personnel of MDAs to upgrade their skills.
It urged
the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development in particular, to
proceed expeditiously to push its internal control systems to a much higher
quality.
The report
reminded heads of departments and spending officers that the financial
responsibility of their organisations falls within the domain of their
functions and, therefore, it cannot be delegated to subordinates or to the
accounting staff.
GRi../